George MacDonald Fantasy Classics Collection: Phantastes, The Light Princess, The Princess and the Goblin, Lilith

by George MacDonald

FOUR BOOKS IN ONE
In one, beautifully laid-out volume, four of the best beloved fantasy novels by George MacDonald -- the 19th century Scottish author and Christian philosopher who was the pioneer of modern fantasy literature. Aside from being a compelling and poignant writer in his own right, he has been cited as a major influence of variety of writers who came after him, including Lewis Caroll, G.K. Chesterton, W. H. Auden, J. M. Barrie, Oswald Chambers, Mark Twain, L. Frank Baum, T.H. White, Richard Adams, Hilaire Belloc, C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Neil Gaiman, Madeleine L'Engle, and countless others. Included in this volume

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Literature

396 pages, Paperback

First published September 7, 2013

About the author

George MacDonald was a Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister. He became a pioneering figure in the field of modern fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow-writer Lewis Carroll. In addition to his fairy tales, MacDonald wrote several works of Christian theology, including several collections of sermons.

Reviews

[Marie Fouhey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found it difficult to give this book an overall rating because my reactions to the stories were quite varied. I read the Princess and the Goblin as a child and always really enjoyed it. The Light Princess was new to me, and I found it interesting and worth reading. I found the plot of Phantastes to be rather meandering and too romantic. It's unfair to judge a book written in the 19th century by today's standards, but it's impossible to take seriously a book that has someone falling in love with a statue of a beautiful woman and following her as she gradually becomes alive. Finally, I thought Lillith was weird, disturbing and unpleasant. I think it's an allegory but couldn't understand what his point was. The Raven, a bird who guides the narrator into a strange land, is also his grandfather's librarian and then turns out to be Adam (the first man). The narrator falls in love with a child from a race of minute children who he vows to serve forever but he leads them into battle against Lillith, Adams first wife, who turns out to be the child's mother and who kills the child. I thought Mara, a character referred to as Mother of Sorrows, might be supposed to be Mary, the mother of Jesus, but he refers to her at one point as the Magdalen. At the end of the book he is returned to his library, not sure if he dreamed his adventures or if the people he loves are really sleeping in the other world and he will meet them again eventually.

[Audrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Princess and The Goblin was my favorite out of the four in this fairytale collection. I would never want to run into those goblins, especially the queen.

[Ethan Kaat · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to trip on LSD without ever doing LSD, read Phantastes. Mind blown

[Phillip Berry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why read fairy tales? Because they take us somewhere else inside and outside of ourselves, call out the good and the evil in the world, and remind us that the dragons can be slain. George MacDonald once wrote "I write, not for children, but for the child-like, whether they be of five, or fifty, or seventy-five." MacDonald has influenced generations of our favorite authors, including three of my favorites: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and G.K. Chesterton.

The Princess and the Goblin is fairy tale, through and through. Goodness is shown to its fullest. MacDonald gives us honor, courage, and faithfulness along with envy, greed, and spite. Through the simple perspective of children, we see the black and white of much that we've made gray as adults and are transported to a place where the impossible is integral and "seeing is not always believing."

Through his characters, MacDonald challenges us to recall the wonder of faith in a world shackled by reason and pushes us to trust even when we don't understand. Why read fairy tales? Because we sometimes to need to abandon the concrete of our logic for the soft, green, texture of imagination and find the wonder in what might be living just beyond our grasp.

i thoroughly enjoyed this story, it's characters, and the wonder it inspired within me. Keep reading fairy tales, they might just remind you of what it means to dream the impossible.

[Josh Nisley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lilith is quite possibly the strangest thing I've ever read: bizarre, evocative, allusive (and elusive), and sensuous. Like a dream that only makes sense as you're experiencing it: you can't recall it, but you know it was good and true.

I'm discovering that reading MacDonald is more about experiencing the world he creates than about understanding everything that's going on at every possible level of understanding. (I'm not convinced MacDonald himself would know if we could ask him--which someday I intend to.) I enjoy the experience, for the most part, but it's an acquired taste. MacDonald is at his best when he is saying theological things; it's frequently breathtaking and achingly beautiful--as theology should be.

The Light Princess and The Princess and the Goblin are pure "faerie" (see Tolkien's essay "On Fairy Stories").

I didn't re-read Phantastes as I read it only a year or two ago.

I love this edition for the quality of its layout and binding, but I was disappointed by the numerous textual errors. This is perhaps to be expected of an independently published text, but it's an unfortunate blemish on an otherwise quality edition.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for the purpose of seeing the evolution of fantasy. This anthology of 4 nineteenth century MacDonald tales gave me enough flavour of his work for now. From whimsical "The Light Princess" to sermon-like Victorian fascination with death and the after-life in "Lillith", the collection shows fantasy writing to be in the dreamlike recollections style at this time. Occassional passages made me think that was filched by Tolkien and other excerpts show influence on C.S. Lewis, as both acknowledged.

[Dayna Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic set of fantasy tales by a wonderful author. The set includes: Phantastes, The Light Princess, The Princess and the Goblin, and Lilith. The middle two stories are fun reads for children, while the other two are definitely for adults. MacDonald weaves Christian themes into his writing. These classic tales are Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Reads.

[Sam Mayo · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do I say? Maybe my favorite fiction author ever. His style was incredible. The scenes that he talked about were so beautiful. I can’t even express how well he writes sentences. Just paragraphs upon paragraphs where I was dazzled. My favorite was definitely Lilith. It was full of fun philosophical words and such. A lot of ideas about Life, death, and rebirth too.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A favorite author....